Two killed in Jourdanton fire

A woman and her 1-year-old son were killed early Wednesday morning, when flames engulfed a Jourdanton apartment where they were sleeping.

Published 7:20 am, Wednesday, August 4, 2010

A woman and her 1-year-old son were killed in an apartment fire early Wednesday morning in Jourdanton, officials said.

Casey Hoffman, 30, and Christopher Chavez likely died of smoke inhalation in a bedroom of Hoffman's parent's apartment after flames engulfed the building in the 2700 block of Zanderson Avenue around 1 a.m., Jourdanton Police Chief Eric Kaiser said.

Hoffman's parents, whose names were not immediately released, were able to escape the blaze and told police, who arrived at the scene first, that their daughter and grandson were trapped inside. Officers broke windows and kicked in the door of the Jourdanton Square Apartment building in an attempt to rescue the woman and child, but flames were too hot, Kaiser said.

It was not immediately clear if Hoffman lived with her parents or was just visiting.

Kaiser said officers don't suspect foul play was involved, but the Atascosa County Fire Marshal and Jourdanton Fire Chief continue to investigate how the fire started. According to police, both of Hoffman's parents, believed to be in their 60s or 70s, are heavy smokers.

Hoffman's mother was in the living room when the fire started and woke up her husband, Kaiser said, who was asleep in a bedroom. He used a fire extinguisher to try and contain the blaze, police said, before the couple escaped and the woman was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. Both were visibly distraught.

"They were pretty upset," Kaiser said. "To lose a daughter and a grandchild at the same time is just tragic."

The deadly fire was one of the first Jourdanton has seen in several years, Kaiser said.

One other home in the building sustained smoke damage, police said, but the fire was mostly contained to one apartment.